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The CRTC is allowing several analog CBC and SRC stations to cease broadcasting on 31 July. There are no plans to replace with digital at this time. This impacts the French SRC channel 26 and English CBC channel 5 from Sault, ON. Talk about a major screwup and lack of adequate budgeting. Wow. I haven't heard anything about CTV channel 2, Global channel 12, TV Ontario channel 20, or channel 38. Those look to be safe for now. But losing CBC is a big deal.

It looks like Sarnia is on the chopping block for the downstaters. I think Windsor switched to digital already. Thunder Bay gets clubbed for viewers in the Keweenaw.

From what I read, CBC TV is going cable only with existing digital transmitters grandfathered in. Yet they aren't getting rid of any of their radio signals. In fact they are replacing their low-power AM stations with low-power FM stations.

This also means CBMT may be getting a few more potential viewers via cable in MI.

The Thunder Bay CBC station is already digital as it is privately owned.

This is a sad day for TV. Over the air TV in the United States is essentially a thing of the past for most. The portability that culminated in the Sony Watchman and later Color models is gone. Free TV has been nearly completely transformed into another Pay Utility.

Now the last remnants of border analog TV are starting to disappear. Think of all the septugenarians living alone with their analog TVs, now only being able to watch one channel, and for how long? I knew one of these people. They died within two years of the transition. They lost their connection to the world, and along with it, their will to live. Were there other factors? Yes, but this was an important one, probably equal to losing one's drivers license.

This seems to be also happening with radio broadcasting, currently in the form of whittling down the relevancy of programming.

Apparently the quality of the most useful content dwindles first, large portions of the audience flee, and when the tried-and-true working technology is replaced with something else, there are no longer enough interested people to issue the necessary quantity of complaints.

Are the AM/FM radio frequencies of interest to the cell phone/wireless tablet companies? If so, how long will it be before a frequency auction comes around?

How is it that such regressions in broadcasting are possible? Even if everyone, say, under 65, is able to fork over monthly contract fees for other news/entertainment/communication services, despite the consequences of the current economy, wouldn't the longer lives of older aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents (as referenced by F.C. below) mean that there'd be more protests and blockage of these regressions? If not by the older and poorer folks directly, then on their behalf by their family members and neighbors?

This is a sad day for TV. Over the air TV in the United States is essentially a thing of the past for most. The portability that culminated in the Sony Watchman and later Color models is gone. Free TV has been nearly completely transformed into another Pay Utility.

Now the last remnants of border analog TV are starting to disappear. Think of all the septugenarians living alone with their analog TVs, now only being able to watch one channel, and for how long? I knew one of these people. They died within two years of the transition. They lost their connection to the world, and along with it, their will to live. Were there other factors? Yes, but this was an important one, probably equal to losing one's drivers license.

I knew an older person that worked well into his 70s because in the infinite wisdom of the powers that be, casinos replaced the auto industry in Southeastern Michigan. He ran up a H*** gambling debt and had to keep working. He didn't have money for cable. Somewhat after the transition came about in 2009, he finally bought a digital converter. He was in an apartment and still used rabbit ears and could only get two stations despite being only 15 miles from the US transmitters. Before he got the converter box after the transition, he could also get CBET Channel 9. After he hooked up the converter, he lost Channel 9 because he didn't have an A/B switch or other bypass. Then the converter stopped working, and he had nothing. I offered to come over to diagnose the problem but he just gave up and declined. His health worsened to the point that he could no longer work or go to casinos. He died less than a year later. Of course, there is no direct cause and effect here, but I can imagine some older people out in the woods in Northern Michigan or Ontario that will be left with only CHBX TV 2 to watch. This man was a Canadian citizen living in the US. Perhaps if Canada would concentrate on English language broadcasts in this region and not French, they wouldn't have to shut off the CBC analog TV.

_________________"I'm meteorologist Arthur Mometer."

"Those of you who think you know everything are very annoying to those of us who do."

"Lies have to be repeated and repeated to be believed. Truth stands on its own merit."

you're right. I didn't read the article fully. CBC (channel 5) and TVO (channel 20) analog TV signals are going to be cut across Canada. So, 2 less stations in people in the northern part of the viewing area.

The Sudbury-Soo-North Bay-Timmins area has very little local news (one station, one hour per day). A market of similar population in the US would likely have two stations doing local news, each of them having three to four hours of news a day, with a third station having one hour or so of news per day.

On another note, did Charter in the Eastern UP lose CBC completely or are they picking up CBLT or CBMT via satellite now?

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